Easter Letter

"But God's anger was kindled [towards Balaam] because he went [to Moab], and the angel of the Lord took his stand in the way as his adversary. Now he was riding on the donkey, and his two servants were with him. And the donkey saw the angel of the Lord [YHWH] standing in the road, with a drawn sword in his hand. And the donkey turned aside out of the road and went into the field. And Balaam struck the donkey, to turn her into the road. Then the angel of the Lord [YHWH] stood in a narrow path between the vineyards, with a wall on either side. And when the donkey saw the angel of the Lord [YHWH], she pushed against the wall and pressed Balaam's foot against the wall. So he struck her again. Then the angel of the Lord [YHWH] went ahead and stood in a narrow place, where there was no way to turn either to the right or to the left. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord [YHWH], she lay down under Balaam. And Balaam's anger was kindled, and he struck the donkey with his staff. Then the Lord [YHWH] open the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, 'What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?' And Balaam said to the donkey, 'Because you have made a fool of me. I wish I had a sword in my hand, for then I would kill you.' And the donkey said to Balaam, 'Am I not your donkey, on which you have ridden all your life to this day? Is it my habit to treat you this way?' And he said, 'No.'

"Then the angel of the Lord [YHWH] opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the Lord [YHWH] standing in the way, with his sword drawn. And he bowed down and fell on his face. And the angel of the Lord [YHWH] said to him, 'Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come to oppose you because your way is perverse before me. The donkey saw me and turned aside before me these three times. If she had not turned aside from me, surely just now I would have killed you and let her live'" (Numbers 22:22-33).

30 March 2007

Dear Members and Friends of Second Reformed Church:

Do you talk to animals? To your pets?

Has one every talked back to you? In the language of your birth?

Balaam was a sinful prophet. And as we read in the history above, Balaam was blind to the extent of God's Rule, but his donkey was not. She saw the angel. She knew that Balaam had sinned. She knew that the angel was going to kill Balaam. She understood that God is the God of the Whole Creation, and every atom, every plant, animal, human, and angel is subject to Him. Balaam couldn't see what was right in front of his face, so God, in His Great Mercy, open the donkey's mouth and she rebuked Balaam in his native Hebrew. And Balaam understood, among other things, that the Creation naturally glorifies and praises God. Any want or deformity of the Creation is due to the sin of humanity. The Creation sees the angels and the other spiritual beings, it knows God, and it knows that God is the King of Creation.

As we look through the Scripture, we see plants, animals, and even inanimate objects naturally praising and glorifying God. They know Who their King is. They know Who their Creator is. They know the Ruler of All. They are crying out, "Worthy, worthy is the Lamb Who was slain!" They are crying out, "Can't you see? Can't you see?"

As this season of Lent ends and we soon celebrate Easter -- the Resurrection of Jesus -- let us remember that this day, this celebration, is not about the invention of candy or plastic hay. It's not about bunnies and chicks or any other animal -- and they would tell us so! This is the day especially that we celebrate the historical fact of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, our God, the King of Creation.

As we spend time with friends and family, enjoying the meals and conversations, let us pray that our eyes would be opened -- that the eyes of all of the elect would soon be opened -- that we, with the Creation, would join in that great chorus singing, "Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!" (Luke 19:38).

And let us not be too quick to punish or dismiss the Creation among us, it sees more than we see, and it may keep us from having our heads cut off.

Join us for worship:

4/1/07 Palm Sunday, Luke 19:28-40 "The Very Stones"
4/5/07 Maundy Thursday/Communion 7 PM, Exodus 12:1-28 "The Passover"
4/6/07 Good Friday/Communion 7 PM, Hebrews 10:19-25 "The Day Draws Near"
4/8/07 Easter/Communion, Luke 24:1-12 "He is Risen"

He is Risen,

Rev. Peter Butler, Jr., pastor
Second Reformed Church